Hi Steemit!
I'm Michael and here is a small follow up about me to add to my first post only a few hours ago.
So many, many years ago I work in multiple restaurants in front of the house positions to pay my rent and go to college on and off. I worked in a wide variety of restaurants and was always interested in the food. Most of my friends were the cooks / chefs so after getting bored with math classes and term papers, I took the plunge and enrolled in cooking school in NYC. At the time if was called the French Culinary Institute but has since changes it name to the International Culinary Center.
Trust me when I say this, no one called and asked me before that name change.! The school has changed over the years and been upgraded but many of the prominent French chefs of NYC are still affiliated and either teach or on the board.
I was very fortunate to work in some great well known restaurants in NYC before moving to Seattle to work at and run several different restaurants. Some time down the road maybe I'll share some interesting stories about kitchen life. Anyone who has worked in the business knows a new story is created every night.
Jump ahead many, many years and I made a career change that allows me now to be a customer more often. I changed careers for a multitude of reason and I do still have many friends at all levels throughout the industry but I'm very happy with Saturday nights off and don't misses the burns and back pain.
I still cook a lot (! ) and due to my background you are still expected to WOW your friends at parties and BBQ's with some amazing dishes.
As you progress the ranks in a professional kitchen and reach a certain level you starting doing less direct cooking and become more and more a teacher to others. Friends and other home cooks always ask for tips, tricks, recipes and and just plan ideas. Eating good food is not easy, it can be handwork but does not always have to be that way.
Some people are surprised to find professional chefs / cooks seldom cook from a recipe. They may turn ideas into a repeatable recipe later but most cook from ideas they have inside or experiences from others. They get inspiration from traveling , dining out or just experimenting. They may see a artichoke and think of 10 things to do with it, were a home cook may not have a clue or need to go find that recipe they think they saved.
The reason food\cooking is popular is because we all need it and we all have opinions about what we will or won't eat. Many of us are very lucky to say we don't like something and turn up our nose and find something else. I always think about how lucky we are to be able to have choices but maybe I'll get into the politics and morals of our habits another time.
Back to tips and tricks; I'm wondering if people would find it interesting to hear and see how to come up with your own ideas for your next dinner ? How to see that artichoke and think about ways to eat it without relying on others to give you all the step by step directions. Another thing many of us are fortunate to have is that if we mess up dinner there is a strong chance you can wait a couple of hours and try again. Don't be afraid ! You mess it up call for a pizza.
Another idea is to show people the basics. The cooking school I went to, we used nearly no machines ( ovens and fire excluded!) We made everything by hand. Pasta we rolled out without a machine, pie crust we pushed butter into the flour with the heal of your hand, cream was never in a mixer. Should you use a machine ? ** HELL YEAH** But it did teach the how and why to do things. I'd be interested if anyone reading this would like to learn the basics ? Knife skills, butchery, how to create a menu idea, etc. etc.
I'm basically looking for ideas that people may find interesting and maybe something a bit different from a different perspective then standard food post.
I appreciate you all taking the time to read and please feel free to give me your feedback and share this with like minded folks. Once I get a feel for what may interest the most - away we will go !
Until then please go try something you have never eaten before and tell someone about it asap !
Cheers!
I work in a restaurant as front of house and my boyfriend works back of house and we're always comparing the different monsters that can make working in a restaurant so daunting. His monsters deal more with his head chefs and the way the food works and mine are more people to people problems. it's always cool to hear from people who genuinely enjoy the food experience because I myself am NOT one of those people (love food, like to cook, nowhere near a chef or a connoisseur by any means) so I like to hear what sparked their interest with it. great story!
Thanks Diamondnater - as you know it is hard work both front and back of the house. I am happy to have all those stories and experiences. Cooking even the most basic , is life skill no one ever regrets.